I brag about:

1. the affordability of housing, especially single family houses and lofts,
2. the (mostly) good sports teams,
3. the weather in spring and fall,
4. the wineries close to STL.,
5. the float trips,
6. the quality of blues, jazz, and rock music.
7. the improving public transportation,
8. and I have told certain types of people that the strip clubs are pretty good, even though I don’t like strippers much and don’t go there much.

BTW I met John McCain in Texas last Tuesday…and your humble narrator was on headline news that morning………

The Arch
Crown Candy
Forest Park
Gateway Trailnet
The Old Post Office
The Fox
Tower Grove Park
Shaw’s Garden
The Cardinals
etc.

I always brag about:

the great, free zoo
the arch
Missouri Botanical Gardens
Forest Park and all it offers
St. Louis Cardinals team
the great colleges and universities–in Illinois, too

I always complain about the strange weather…as we saw this week.

Where do I start? I brag about so much. Some of the above is mentioned already, but I brag about:

1. Cathedrals that look like they were picked up from within in cities all over Europe and planated here - some of the most European Inspired and expertly crafted in the U.S., one of the Oldest Cathedrals west of the Mississippi as well as the huge Cathedral Basilica - described as a Cathedral befitting to some of those in Rome - one of the best he had seen. It is also home to one of the largest collections of Mosaic Art in the world.

2.A The rich rich history from the Cahokia and Osage Indians, the Spanish, then French…followed by Germains and Irish and Italians - to the Sudanese, Tunesians, Hispanic, Bosnian, Serbian and Croatian immigrants of today; The Cahokia Mounds nearby dating St. Louis area farther back to 700-900A.D. as a population epicenter; the legends of the construction of some of the old buildings downtown on quicksand (Old Post Office) and the tunnels and underground hidden secrets underneath our city

2.B Some of the most beautiful and uniqe architecture in it’s homes and buildings…displaying everything from Arabic & Moorish, Baroque, Neo-Classical, Greek Revival, Gothic, Art Deco, Romanesqe, Scrubby Dutch, French Mansard, Byzantine (The Fox) and Modern/contemporary, to Vernacular and and Federal

3. Quaint Neighborhoods (Hundreds and hundreds of them) inspired by the immigrants who settled them.

4. It is no more than 4-5 hours from some other great cities like Chicago, Kansas City, Indy or Nashville, Memphis, Louisville, Lexinton, Branson, Lake of the Ozarks, if you’re looking to get away for a weekend.

5. It is an affordable city - one can live well here for less than in other cities. There is often plenty to do nearby to St. Louis - Historic Wineries that dot our surrounding area (and resemble little cities across Europe), the Trip up to Alton along the Great River Road, 1 hour away from the Oldest European settlement west of the Miss. (Ste. Genevieve - founded in 1732) and then Kimmswick (founded slightly later); Six Flags, Water Parks, Nature reserves, walking tours, house tours, tons of events and holday celebrations rooted deep in traditions.

6. It is smoker friendly still - there still is sanctity in smoking and non-smoking sections. It is the birth place of Anheuser Busch beer (and of course with that comes the famous clydesdales)

7. The free museums with impressive collections both local, National and Internationally Renowned tours and exhibits; the free zoo, which is also nationally acclaimed as among some of the best in the country and that was once curated by the World Renowned Marlin Perkins.

8. Most east coast are surprised to learn that we are city with a metro population of over 2.7 million people.

8. One of the 2nd Largest Botanical Gardens in the U.S. inspired by the Kew Gardens of London.

9. A city of Many 1st’s and/or oldests or largest…..i.e. 1st Ice Cream Cone, Introduction of Iced Tea and the Hot Dog, 2nd Oldest Jesuit University in the U.S. Site of the 1st Olympics on U.S. Soil; 2nd or 3rd largest urban park in the U.S. (Forest Park at approx 1400 acres); the start of Lewis and Clark’s famous voyage; home to the tallest manmade National monument in the U.S. (Arch), home to the 2nd oldest Symphony in the U.S. (The Nationally Reclaimed and World Famous St. Louis Symphony), the oldest Victorian park west of the Mississippi (Lafayette Park)..and on and on the list continues

I could go on and on and on - and be a possible tour guide for the City of St. Louis if I kept up..But I think that too many of our own citizens overlook St. Louis for what it has to offer. I did not grow up here (and thus you can’t ask me what high-school I attended) but when you move here from elsewhere, you look at things much differently with eyes that are wider open and you notice things that natives/locals miss or have never realized.

The only thing that does annoy me is the stigmas and associations made by mention of the area in which you live (Which ties to the whole “Where did you go to high school”). I.E. South City, South County, West COunty, North County….Chesterfield/Ladue, Cote Brilliante, North City, East St. Louis, Belleville, Kirkwood….Eureka/Pacific…Jefferson COunty.

But I love St. Louis

The positives:

Relatively easy to get around traffic wise
Affordable housing
Good restaurants, hospitals, universities
Nice parks
Nice neighborhoods and neighbors
CCW law
Airport easy to get around, rarely crowded

The negatives:

Earnings Tax
Crappy infrastructure such as roads, bridges, etc.
Democrats dug in like Alabama ticks
Earnings Tax
Native St. Louisians love sales taxes
Why I can’t go from I-70 eastbound downtown to I-64 west easily
Miller Lite difficult to find in some restaurants
Earnings Tax

I tell people I’m from Chicago.

And we’re glad you do.

I love the Bohemian freedom and tolerance of St. Louis. My family has been here since the 1840’s and I wouldn’t live anywhere else, except possibly New Orleans.

I brag about:
1- How crime-free our city is
2- How responsive the city government is to it’s citizen’s concerns
3- How polite and non-abusive our city police are
4- How I feel free from the threat of eminent domain
5- How there is no racism at all in the city
6- How well everyone drives here
7- How great our city public schools are

Wait, that must be some other place I was dreaming about.